By LaKeshia N. Myers
Representative LaKeshia Myers
It is said that the past is prologue. If that is true, we should look closely at the lives of our forebears and take notes. For this edition of the summer reading list, I critique five books from the 1960s. I have chosen to look closely at the words and ideologies of individuals who are or were considered political prisoners. For this purpose, we implement author J.L.
Tauber’s definition of a political prisoner, as outlined with the United States Department of Justice. Tauber defines a political prisoner as, “one who is detained for his or her beliefs, color, sex, ethnic origin, language, or religious creed, regardless of whether the individual has advocated the use of violence and includes those detained without trial or prosecuted as a form of persecution” (Tauber, 1992).
Cleaver, Eldridge. 1968. Soul on Ice. New York: Dell.
Eldridge Cleaver’s Soul on Ice is a memoir and collection of essays written while the author served time in Folsom Prison. The essays were instrumental in forming the philosophies and ideas behind the Black power movement. After his release from prison, Cleaver became a prominent member of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense.
Soul on Ice is divided into four parts that describe the author’s journey from what he describes as a “supermasculine” but disadvantaged young man into a radical Black liberationist. While in prison, Cleaver experienced a political awakening by reading the works of Thomas Paine, Karl Marx, W.E.B. DuBois, Malcolm X, James Baldwin, and other political and philosophical writers. He expresses his political awakening in the book and writes several essays on many topics that outline his political ideologies and thoughts on topics of the day.
Jackson, George. Soledad Brother: the Prison Letters of George Jackson. New York: Coward-McCann, 1970.
Imagine being sentenced to life in prison for stealing $70. This happened to George Jackson in 1961. While incarcerated, Jackson began to advocate against harsh and inhumane conditions of inmates in the California penal system. An avid student, Jackson befriended fellow inmate W.L. Nolen, who introduced him to the political ideologies and writings of Lenin, Trotsky, Marx, Engels, and Chairman Mao. Together, Nolen and Jackson co-founded the Black Guerilla Family, a prison gang inspired by the pan-African teachings of Marcus Garvey. The Black Guerilla Family (BGF) was founded with the stated goals of, “promoting Black power, maintaining dignity in prison, and overthrowing the United States government.”
Soledad Brother is a compilation of letters written by Jackson detailing his experiences inside the penitentiary. In the book, he discusses rampant mistreatment by prison staff and inmates who were members of the Aryan Nation. In 1970, he was charged, along with two other Soledad Brothers, with the murder of correctional officer John Vincent Mills in the aftermath of a prison fight. Jackson’s letters are poignant and offer insight into a world behind bars that most people will never experience firsthand.
Seale, Bobby, 1936-, Seize the Time: The Story of the Black Panther Party and Huey P. Newton. New York, Random House, 1970.
Seize the Time is a book written by co-founder of the Black Panther Party, Bobby Seale. In it, Seale details his early life, meeting Huey Newton, and the creation of the Black Panther Party. Written while Seale was in San Francisco State Prison, during a period when nearly every Black activist organization was under attack by government agencies.
Seale’s book is written in a language and style that reflect the urgency, passion, and justifiable paranoia of that turbulent era.
Bobby Seale also details his encounter with Eldridge Cleaver and his joining the party. He also discusses his trial after being separated from the Chicago Seven. After his case was severed, the government declined to retry him on the conspiracy charges. Though he was never convicted in the case, Seale was sentenced to four years for criminal contempt of court. The contempt sentence was later reversed on appeal.
While the Panthers were undermined by forces without and within, Seize the Time, with its urgent call for Black self-defense and Black pride, remains a compelling account of one manifestation of an oppressed people’s continuing struggle for liberation.
Davis, Angela Y. 1974. Angela Davis: An Autobiography. New York: Random House.
Angela Davis’ autobiography is a powerful and commanding account of her early years in struggle. In the book, Davis recounts her childhood in segregated Birmingham, Alabama, to one of the most significant political trials of the century: from her political activity in a New York high school to her work with the U.S. Communist Party, the Black Panther Party, and the Soledad Brothers; and from the faculty of the Philosophy Department at UCLA to the FBI’s list of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives.
I chose this text because I feel women and their contributions to the liberation struggle are often overlooked. This is often the case when we dig deeper into the story of women who were members of the Black Panther Party. Many of the rank-and-file party members were women who were responsible for executing the party’s community programs like free breakfast for children and health clinics.
By adding the story of Angela Davis, a woman whose iconic afro and teachings have defined revolutionary thinking on so many subjects, I felt her story was an important one to add to the canon of “best books” to read about this time.
Shakur, Assata. Assata: an Autobiography. Chicago, Illinois: Lawrence Hill Books, 2001.
In keeping with the theme of Black political prisoners, I could not ignore Assata Shakur. Assata Shakur has been one of the most high-profile political prisoners in modern times.
Her story is told as an autobiography detailing her youth and introduction to activism. She also goes into great detail about her activity with the Black Liberation Army that led to her conviction and incarceration. She also discusses her 1977 conviction for the murder of a New Jersey State Trooper.
Like many political prisoners, she went underground and eventually left the United States by seeking political asylum in Cuba. Assata Shakur, like Angela Davis has served as an inspiration for young activists and movements like Black Lives Matter.